Six U.S. service members were killed when a military refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq while supporting operations linked to Iran, U.S. officials said Friday. The crash occurred about two weeks after Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28, 2026, the Pentagon's name for the U.S. military campaign targeting Iranian forces. The aircraft, a Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, went down Thursday in what the U.S. military described as "friendly airspace," according to United States Central Command. A second KC-135 involved in the mission landed safely. The nature of the incident between the two aircr

Six U.S. service members were killed when a military refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq while supporting operations linked to Iran, U.S. officials said Friday. The crash occurred about two weeks after Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28, 2026, the Pentagon's name for the U.S. military campaign targeting Iranian forces.

The aircraft, a Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, went down Thursday in what the U.S. military described as "friendly airspace," according to United States Central Command. A second KC-135 involved in the mission landed safely. The nature of the incident between the two aircraft has not been disclosed, and officials confirmed the crash was not caused by hostile fire or friendly fire.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called the crew heroes at a Pentagon briefing Friday. "War is hell. War is chaos. And as we saw yesterday with the tragic crash of our KC-135 tanker, bad things can happen. American heroes, all of them," Hegseth said. "We will greet those heroes at Dover and their sacrifice will only recommit us to the resolve of this mission."

The KC-135 Stratotanker is used by the U.S. Air Force to refuel other aircraft in midair, allowing fighter jets and bombers to extend missions without landing. Refueling tankers typically operate behind front lines and are rarely targeted directly. The aircraft has been in service for more than six decades and continues to play a key role in U.S. aerial operations.

A KC‑135 refuelling aircraft went down in western Iraq Credit: AP

The crash brings the U.S. death toll in Operation Epic Fury to at least 13 service members. The Pentagon has not yet released the names of the six crew members killed, pending notification of their families.

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